Investigations (episode)
Neelix searches for a traitor aboard Voyager using his morning news program. Summary A Briefing with Neelix goes on the air for the first time, with the approval of Captain Janeway, but Harry Kim suggests that Neelix could also include more intriguing information, rather than just light-hearted matters. Neelix also attempts to get The Doctor involved in the show. Later that day, Neelix receives a message from one of his old Talaxian friends, Laxeth, regarding the fact that one of the Voyager's crew members is going to be leaving the ship and joining their cargo supply line. When Neelix goes straight to the captain with this information, Tuvok and Janeway reveal that they knew that Tom Paris was going to be leaving, since he'd asked to be put off the ship soon after he was taken off the bridge. The next edition of Neelix's program is of a much more solemn nature, with Neelix giving a moving speech about Paris, and how he'll be missed on the ship. During a staff meeting, B'Elanna Torres is contacted by Jonas in engineering concerning a plasma overload in the warp core. Racing down to help, B'Elanna works with Jonas to stop the overload. The only option is to vent the plasma through the nacelles. This results severe damage to the warp coils and, with the help of Neelix, they find a source of the needed materials on a nearby planet. They set a course, not suspecting that it is a trap laid out for them by Seska and the Kazon. Voyager receives a distress signal from Laxeth who tells Captain Janeway that the Kazon-Nistrim have attacked them and kidnapped Paris. This leads Neelix to suspect that there is a spy on board Voyager. In Main Engineering, Neelix accesses the communications logs and discovers gaps going back several months. Neelix reports this to Tuvok, who thanks Neelix for this information, but then requests that the matter be left to him. Disgruntled, Neelix agrees, but then secretly continues his investigation. :"Captain's log, stardate 49485.2. In spite of the fact that Tom Paris has been abducted by the Kazon, we must continue on course for the Hemikek system." On board the Kazon vessel, Paris is visited by Seska, who explains why she's kidnapped him, and says that she has no intention of raising her child on a Kazon ship. She then leaves Paris alone in the room. This gives him the chance he'd been waiting for. He goes over to a console and attempts to access the communications array. Using a device he had hidden under his sleeve which he attaches to the console, he attempts to amplify the last communication received by the ship. Back on Voyager, Neelix keeps digging in his investigation, and, with help from Hogan he tracks the source of the communications to Paris' quarters. Neelix goes there and uncovers evidence implicating Paris as the traitor. Without mentioning this to anyone, Neelix goes straight on the air with his conclusions. Hearing this, Janeway and Tuvok have a meeting with Neelix and Chakotay, and it is revealed that Paris was actually part of their plan to try to find out who the spy was. All of his insubordination and rudeness for the past month had actually been a ruse to make it seem plausible that he would want to leave the ship. Chakotay, stunned and angry about being left out of the loop on this plan, demands to know why he'd not been included. Tuvok says that it was his idea, because he suspected that the traitor was a Maquis crewmember, and that he didn't want to put Chakotay in an awkward position. Janeway suggests to Neelix that he should continue digging, and that he should pretend that he doesn't think Paris was the traitor. On the Kazon ship, Paris finally manages to clear up the communications log enough to recognize Michael Jonas communicating with Seska. Just as he does this, Seska and two Kazon guards arrive, giving Paris a second to activate a small bomb that forms a part of the amplification device. Just before he is taken away by the Kazon guards, the device blows up, knocking them all off their feet, giving Paris the chance to grab a weapon and race out of the room, the guards hard on his heels. On Voyager, Neelix is in engineering, trying to get to the bottom of the investigation. Jonas sends Hogan off with some PADDs for B'Elanna. After Neelix and Jonas are alone, Jonas begins the second part of his plan. He activates a force field, blocking off the access to engineering, and much to Neelix's surprise, he begins deactivating the weapons systems one after the other. As this is happening, Paris escapes the Kazon ship in a shuttle, and manages to tell everyone that Jonas is the traitor. As he is beamed off the shuttle, it explodes, and the pursuing warship continues on, attacking Voyager. In engineering, Neelix realizes that Jonas is the traitor, but Jonas hits him on the head and then races in an attempt to disable Voyager's shields. Neelix recovers quickly, and picks up an antimatter pod-holder and follows Jonas up a ladder to the upper level. Neelix manages to gain the upper hand, and Jonas is knocked over the railing into the plasma-stream from a ruptured plasma conduit, incinerating him instantly. Quickly reactivating the weapons systems, Neelix then deactivates the force field. On the bridge, the weapons come back online, and Voyager quickly disables the Kazon vessel. On the next edition of A Briefing with Neelix, Neelix interviews Paris about his heroics. Tom modestly claims it was nothing, and apologizes to the crew members he offended when he was acting insubordinate, especially Chakotay, though he does admit it was a certain amount of fun. Memorable Quotes "Well? What did you think?" "I'm a doctor, not a performer." : - Neelix and The Doctor "Hello, Seska. You're looking radiantly maternal." : - Tom Paris "I hear you're leaving the ship." "Good news travels fast, I guess." : - Neelix and Tom Paris "Are you saying Paris' insulting behavior, the gambling, being late for duty, mouthing off at me... was all a ruse?" "That is correct. It was important that his decision to leave the ship appear plausible, so he began behaving like a malcontent." : - Chakotay and Tuvok "I know that I've been acting like a jerk for the last couple of months. Unfortunately, I had to behave that way if the spy was going to believe that I really wanted to leave the ship. So, I'd like to apologize to anyone that I might have offended... especially Commander Chakotay, I gave him a pretty hard time. Not that it wasn't a certain amount of fun, mind you." : - Tom Paris Background Information * King Abdullah ibn al-Hussein (then Crown Prince) of Jordan appears as an extra in this episode. * This episode marks the final appearance of Michael Jonas, and the first mention of Neelix's daily broadcast program A Briefing with Neelix. * Reference to 47: When Ensign Hogan assists Neelix in Engineering, he responds to the computer "Engineering authorization Omega-4-7" which is later repeated by Neelix. Video and DVD releases *UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 2.8, . *As part of the VOY Season 2 DVD collection. * The Doctor seems to change into the person we loved, after Neelix asks him to be on his show. Then gets snubbed. :) Links and References Main Cast *Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway *Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay *Roxann Biggs-Dawson as Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres *Jennifer Lien as Kes *Robert Duncan McNeill as Lieutenant Tom Paris *Ethan Phillips as Neelix *Robert Picardo as The Doctor *Tim Russ as Lieutenant Tuvok *Garrett Wang as Ensign Harry Kim Guest Stars *Raphael Sbarge as Michael Jonas *Martha Hackett as Seska *Jerry Sroka as Laxeth *Simon Billig as Hogan Co-Star *Majel Barrett as the computer voice Uncredited Co-Stars *Abdullah ibn al-Hussein as a science division ensign *Jeff Cadiente as a Kazon-Nistrim guard *Steve Carnahan as an operations division officer *Tarik Ergin as Ayala *Holiday Freeman as an operations division officer *Kerry Hoyt as Fitzpatrick *Julie Jiang as an operations division lieutenant j.g. *Ken Lesco as a Kazon-Nistrim guard *Dennis Madalone as a Kazon-Nistrim guard *Tom Morga as a Kazon-Nistrim guard *Louis Ortiz as Culhane *Shepard Ross as Murphy (security) *Richard Sarstedt as William McKenzie *Unknown performers as **Pablo Baytart (voice only) **Murphy (science) Stunt doubles *George Colucci as stunt double for Ethan Phillips *Christopher Doyle as stunt double for Raphael Sbarge References A Briefing with Neelix, antimatter, Bolians, Cardassians, com link, communications master, computer core, Cortenum, dermal regenerator, dilithium, drifter, engine core, Eskarian egg, EPS manifold, EPS system, galactic background noise, glottis, Hamilton, Hemikek IV, Hemikek system, ''Hlaka'' soup, hypospray, impedrezine, injector valves, interlink sequencer, journalism; journalist; Kazon, Kazon-Nistrim, Klingons, Kotati, magnetic constrictors, Maquis, Mithren, monocrystal cortenum, PADD, Pendrashian cheese, phaser, phaser array, plasma, polysilicate verterium, pool, power grid, power transfer conduit, sensors, signal correlation trace, signal modulation analysis, Silmic wine, Starfleet Academy, subspace antenna array, subspace communication logs, Talaxians, Talaxian convoy, triage, verterium cortenide, warp coil, warp core, warp core breach, Zabee nuts |next= }} de:Der Verräter es:Investigations fr:Investigations nl:Investigations Category:VOY episodes